House panel okays bill against online child abuse
A House panel approved a substitute bill that seeks to strengthen digital content safety and online protection for children.
The House Committee on Welfare of Children, chaired by Tingog Party-list Representative Yedda Marie Romualdez, said the substitute bill will provide penalties for violations and also will allot funds for the proposal.
The substitute bill is composed of at least five different measures and a resolution which are all aimed at protecting minors from abuse online.
“We have made a lot of progress from a very diverse proposal from our authors to this cohesive and comprehensive bill we have at hand,” Romualdez said.
She said the substitute bill truly represents stakeholders’ aim to provide strong online protection policies for the children.
The most salient feature of the bill is declaring as crime and punishable by the law the acts such as child sexual exploitation and abuse materials, cyberbullying, cyberstalking, online child trafficking, online impersonation, online grooming, online publication of child terrorist and violent extremism, among others.
Agencies like Department of Justice (DoJ); National Privacy Commission; End Child Prostitution in Asian Tourism Ph; Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center will play vital roles in perfecting the law.
Romualdez said the suggestions of these agencies will be considered as well.
The bill will be submitted to the House committee on appropriations for the funding provisions.
